Arizona Cardinals football is back with a bang.
Arizona is now 1-0 on the 2026 season after earning a 26-14 win over the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday. Head coach Mike LaFleur is a victor in his first career contest at the helm, while the Cardinals‘ offense put together an efficient performance.
The offense flowing (to the tune of 393 yards) comes with a caveat. This is the fact that rookie RB Jeremiyah Love took a backseat to an extent in the 60 minutes of action. Coach LaFluer provided much-needed clarity on the result in Monday’s post-victory presser.
Cardinals’ LaFleur Clarifies Love’s Subdued Role
LaFleur – in answering the inevitable question surrounding Love’s workload – gave a strong response.
Darren Urban (AZ Cardinals) relayed that Love’s snap count of 44% (Michael Florio) ultimately had much more to do with game flow than Love’s recovery from an ankle injury.
Love, 21, faced an uncertain status in the weeks leading into this game after suffering an ankle injury in preseason. The third overall pick in April’s draft did find pay-dirt for the Cardinals on the opening drive of the game. The immediate display of talent is obvious, but Allgeier ultimately became the go-to player as the game progressed.
This doesn’t mean that Love’s impending recovery had zero bearing on the approach, however. LaFleur did acknowledge that Love’s inability to practice for multiple weeks led directly to a strict monitoring program.
Ultimately, Love taking under 50% of the snap share won’t be a regular occurrence. It also demonstrated that Arizona has the ability to produce an above-average offense – even in this scenario.
Arizona Offense is More Than Just Love
While the rookie is a crucial piece of the Cardinals’ offense, there is more to operations than meet the eye.
For starters, LaFleur’s play designs were a thing of beauty. The 39-year-old crafted a beautiful game script, made requisite adjustments, and didn’t seem to be afraid to feature supporting pieces such as WR Kendrick Bourne.
Quarterback Jacoby Brissett excelled in his role. The veteran put together a largely turnover-averse performance, while also pushing the ball forward and extending plays with his legs. Trey McBride, Michael Wilson, and Marvin Harrison Jr. all made plays that swung the pendulum in the Cardinals’ favor.
The offensive line (more or less) are exceeding expectations to this point as well. Clean operations, only allowing one sack on Brissett, and providing valiant run support is all that can be asked of them.
Despite this, Love is conspicuous in adding a layer of explosiveness to the Cardinals’ offense that is going to be needed moving forward. If Arizona can continue ratting off wins in this means, there’s a real chance it’s in large part due to Love’s game-changing talent and well-rounded nature as a franchise running back.
The week one performance is truly an amazing example of a perfect storm coming together. There will be more tests directly ahead, however, as the Seattle Seahawks make a visit to Glendale on Sept. 20.
Cardinals HC Mike LaFleur Clarifies Jeremiyah Love’s Week 1 Snap Count